1739 Certifications, 152 Vendors, and a Partridge in a Pear Tree

One of my coworkers recently pointed me toward a web page simply titled The List Of Certifications. According to the author, there are 1,739 current IT certifications offered across a spectrum of 152 vendors, from Adobe to Zend. I’ve never sat down and counted them all, but it sounds about right.

Faced with all these choices, how can a certification-seeker pick the best path to focus on? Obviously your industry will dictate whether you’re considering a project management-type path like Project+, ITIL, or Certified ICAgile Professional, versus a hardware-specific or OS-specific certification. The term “best” is also relative: are you looking for the certification that’s the easiest or least expensive to obtain, the one that requires the most (or least) training, the one that has the best future earnings potential, or the one that you can pick up while still working your day job?

As 2012 wraps up, different industry leaders are offering their take on the “best” five, ten, or twenty certifications to pursue for job growth. Time and again, the most recommended certs are vendor-neutral (CompTIA), have widespread application across multiple job sectors (CCNA and MCSE), or are process-based rather than OS-based (PMP, ITIL). Here’s several lists to start you thinking: